To pair a phone or other mobile device with a vehicle, the user may enable BLUETOOTH on the device to be paired, and select from the vehicle computing system to begin the pairing process. To complete the pairing, the vehicle may display a personal identification number (PIN), and the user may enter the PIN into the device to be paired to the vehicle. Upon successful entry of the PIN, the vehicle computing system may display a message indicating that the mobile device is paired with the vehicle.
SmartDeviceLink (SDL) is a standard set of protocols and messages that connect applications on a smartphone to a vehicle head unit. This messaging enables a consumer to interact with their application using common in-vehicle interfaces such as a touch screen display, embedded voice recognition, steering wheel controls and various vehicle knobs and buttons. There are three main components that make up the SDL ecosystem. The core component is the software which vehicle manufacturers (OEMs) implement in their vehicle head units. Integrating this component into their head unit and HMI based on a set of guidelines and templates enables access to various smartphone applications. The optional SDL server can be used by Vehicle OEMs to update application policies and gather usage information for connected applications. The iOS and Android libraries are implemented by app developers into their applications to enable command and control via the connected head unit.